Jaipur *headbob*

So it's been about three weeks since my last post I think, and Jaipur has continued to grow on me. We've done a lot of sightseeing on weekends - I'm pretty sure we've visited almost every major attraction such as Hawa Mahal, Janta Mantar, the City Palace, Albert Hall, Amber Fort... all beautiful. Our host mom took us to Bapu Bazaar, a market in the Old City, and helped us barter with all the shop owners. We went at night and the market was all lit up and busy and loud and crammed with stuff to buy, it was awesome. I have continued to foster my growing love of Indian food, SO GOOD, and we're taking a cooking class in one of the coming weekends. I'm obsessed with warm chapatis and lentils and pineapple and different sauce things that I can never remember the name of.

We started up our work project. Karelle, Julia, and I are working at a women's empowerment center teaching computer literacy skills.to women and young girls. It has been fun getting to know the women and we've found out that they hope to apply for jobs with their computer skills or teach them to their children. It's really challenging sometimes because the communication is a bit strained - I'm working with the group of women who are least experienced with computers who also happen to have the least experience with English. But they are all really sweet ladies and they make me laugh. I make them laugh, too, since they make me sing Hindi songs that I don't know the words to for them at least once a week, it's kind of awful.

We also are "beautifying" a school room at one of the government schools, basically repainting and cleaning and possibly doing another mural. We keep pretty busy.

Last weekend was Jaipur's kite festival. We spent the day on the roof with our host family. It was an incredible experience - all our neighbors were out on their roofs too and we put down a sheet so we could lie back and watch the colorful kites that were flying everywhere. It was like stargazing, the more you looked, the more you saw. So beautiful! We had a picnic lunch up there on the roof, too, including festive food like POPCORN and these delicious lentil ball things. Our host family tried to teach us to fly a few kites but it was really difficult - they don't use the nice structured kites we're used to but just tissue paper kites with wooden frames. The next day kites were all over the streets and in the trees.

We also got henna'd. A woman from IDEX gave us all beautiful designs that go up to our elbows and down all our fingers. It's supposed to last for two weeks - it's really cool but I keep looking down and being caught off guard by my ink, so not used to my tattoo. It is awesome, though.

And OK, this all sounds great, but there are two things I have to complain about, I just need to vent, sorry. The tuk-tuk (auto rickshaw) drivers here drive me CRAZY! They are infuriating. They always try to rip Julia and me off, charging crazy prices, and when we refuse they just drive away without even looking at us, it's really annoying because sometimes it'll take like 15 minutes just to get a ride somewhere. Plus the driving in this city is out of control, once our tuk-tuk driver hit a motorcycle and they guy fell off and we just kept driving. "Wasn't my fault," he said. Cool. Also, we signed up for the gym near our house which is called Veight Watchers with a "V" and it's nice that we have a gym but the staff there are always hovering over us and won't leave us alone and they also won't let you use a machine for more than 15 minutes at a time. The first time one of the staff guys tried to get me to move I pretended not to see him trying to get my attention behind me... it only worked for a couple of minutes before I had to acknowledge him. Well anyway everything else is great.

IST is coming up and Julia, Katie, and I are going to Udaipur. I'm very excited - a James Bond movie was filmed there once and it looks awesome on google images... It's also known as "Venice of the East" because it's built around some huge waterways. I'll report back on how the weekend goes!

recent photos

I PET A LION CUB and other adventures

Sorry, I meant to update this before we left South Africa but I never got around to it so now this post is going to be looong. The past couple weeks have been crazy busy! I guess I’ll start back at Cape Town.

It was a great weekend! Cape Town is huge. We stayed at a really cool hostel with tons of murals all over the walls and each room had a different theme. We all stayed in one room, the “cosmos” room, which was probably the least interesting theme because it pretty much looked like a little girl’s room, but still. On the first day we walked down to the waterfront, which is sort of like a boardwalk area with lots of shops and naval ships sitting around. We went to the aquarium and found a movie theater which was SO exciting since we haven’t seen a movie in months. We watched the new Twilight movie, which was awful, but being in the theater was enough. We took a train to Simonstown to see the African penguins chillin’ on the beach. The train ride was pretty cool, too – when we bought our tickets the lady at the counter was so shocked that we wanted third class but it was not that uncomfortable and it was interesting to see all the musicians and vendors who came through. We went to the beautiful Kirstenbosch gardens and caught a free concert on this huge lawn there. We also visited the Company Gardens and had a picnic on the beach one night. Arden and Sarah got tattoos at a place we found in town, and Katie and I got our noses pierced. Just a little stud, but I’m a bit nervous that it’s going to be hard to take care of here in India. So far it’s fine, though. I wasn’t sure I liked it when I first got it but it’s definitely growing on me! It’s nice to have it in India for a while because tons of people here have one, so I totally blend right in. But anyway we tried to go out to the supposedly great clubs in Cape Town one night but had little success. One place we went into was packed with people, really busy, and then like five minutes after our arrival it was deserted – we must have killed the vibe – it was hilarious. So overall the trip was great, except that everything was expensive so now I’m broke. And except that on the drive back our bus kept overheating and so our 8-hour ride turned into an 11-hour ordeal with no air conditioning. And none of the windows opened. It was so hot we couldn’t move. Quote of the trip was Chris, “I feel sticky enough to climb a wall.”

We returned to Plett and after a few days had our media project presentations to the community, and a farewell braai (of course there was a braai, there’s ALWAYS a braai). Kayce and Amanda made dirt pudding for dessert – in case you are unfamiliar with this DELICIOUS dish it is chocolate pudding with mashed up oreos and gummy worms, basically the best thing ever. The media projects turned out well and it was a fun farewell celebration. We said goodbye to our caregivers which was sad, and the next morning we said goodbye to our host families and left for Enrichment Week!

Oh, but before we left Mijal and I managed a little wreckage in our host family’s (Daniel and Chrissy’s) house. There was one day when Mijal was working on her media project late so she told me to listen for her yell outside the gate of our apartments so I could let her in. I was getting anxious because she hadn’t come home and so when I heard her outside I was running to get the clicker to open the gate and hurrying outside to let her in and failed to notice that the sliding glass door was closed. I ran straight into it and popped it right out of the door frame! Before I even knew what had happened I found myself standing outside, holding this heavy door with a big smudge from my forehead on it. I was torn between uncontrollable laughter and panic – Daniel and Chrissy were out running errands and I had to fix the door before they came home! So I’m yelling at Mijal to come help me quickly, meanwhile we’re both doubled over in laughter, and just as we are hoisting the door up to try to jam it back into the frame, Daniel and Chrissy pulled up in the driveway. Oops. Luckily they just laughed at me and we were able to fix the door. Then another day Mijal was trying to do a pull-up on a pull-up bar in the house and she was doing great, pulled herself all the way up, and then it came off the wall and plummeted to the ground with her still hanging on. It was pretty funny. She was fine, by the way.

But yes, enrichment week. We spent it at Addo National Park. Highlights of the week included hanging out at our NICE lodge which was tucked away near a bunch of lemon orchards and a river, beautiful. We played games on Christmas and watched some of the new season of The Office, went to the reptile and raptor center and held some horrifying boa constrictors. One of the best parts was the cheetah center where we got to cuddle with lion cubs and a cheetah cub. SO CUTE. We went on a full day safari and saw lions, tons of elephants, a rhino, and lots of warthogs which are surprisingly adorable. They have to kneel down on their forearms to drink! We spent one day kayaking in a river and another hiking to a cool cave with waterfalls and having a picnic lunch at a beautiful waterhole. It was an awesome week.

Then we left for India! The travel was awful so when we arrived at our families we had slept like 3 hours in the past who knows how long, it was so disorienting. During our long layover in Mumbai we all laid out on the floor of the airport and crashed – typical homeless TBB students. We were surprised to find out that we weren’t in our host families alone – I’m with Julia in the Gupta family’s home! They are very friendly and can understand English which is nice. They mostly speak Hindi, though, which we are picking up word by word. We had one Hindi lesson today and we’ll definitely need it to get around Jaipur. Our house has a nice terrace on the roof where our host brother says he’ll teach us to fly kites. He’s also going to teach us to play cricket. So far the food here has been delicious. My favorite has been this potato thing we had for breakfast that was kind of like a hash brown but with vegetables in it. There’s lots of chai tea, all the time, and curries. I’m impressed with myself for liking it all. Also, our house is about a five minute walk from the famous Laxmi Narayan Temple, which is huge and completely white marble with tons of carvings. Julia and I walked there on our first day. Our host sister has told us there is a gym nearby too, which we plan on investigating, because I definitely need it…

We have a lot to look forward to. We had our first seminar on education today. We’re trying to answer questions like “Does everyone need the same education?” “Who decides what is taught?” “Are students and teachers equal?” We’re starting our work project soon – we’re running three different projects, stuff like teaching English to disadvantaged kids and teaching computer skills to women. It’ll be interesting. I’m also excited for New Years Eve – our family is taking us to a party on someone’s roof terrace. They say it’ll have a DJ and that we probably won’t get back till like two in the morning – yeah, gettin’ crazy here! The Kite Festival in Jaipur is also coming up soon, hopefully we’ll learn before then so we can join! Julia and I are also going shopping with our host sisters to find some Indian garb, they all wear beautiful colors here. Plus they’ve got these killer socks that have a space between the big toe and other toes so you can comfortably wear your socks with your sandals. I fully intend to score some of those. And of course there’s tons more to look forward to but I’ll save it for later!

Happy New Years to everyone!

Howzit?

Howzit is how English speakers here always greet each other, haha, I'm so cultural. Or molo, that's Xhosa hello. Actually I should say molweni because that's plural hello. I know, you're impressed. That's almost the extent of the Xhosa I can pronounce though so...

Happy birthday to Dad Mai who requested a blog post as his birthday present. Love ya paps

Since I last wrote....

South Africa has continued to be incredible. I've learned so much. Our work in the townships has made the HIV/AIDS epidemic so so real. We're learning to understand HIV as more than a virus, but also the social, economic, cultural, and historical context that makes it such a challenge here. Just treatment and prevention aren't enough to fight an epidemic without taking into account the environment in which it's spreading. Poverty, gender inequality, infrastructure, lack of educational and economic opportunities, cultural beliefs about AIDS and treatment, the historical legacy of apartheid, and so many other factors contribute.

December 1st was World AIDS Day and we planned an event to raise awareness on the beach in Plett. It was pretty difficult because we were in the middle of Plett rage, so almost all the beach-goers were high school graduates who were there to party and difficult to engage with in meaningful conversation. Arden, Julia, and I walked around trying to get people to come to our booth and talk about the epidemic by offering red ribbon facepaint which was actually very popular. It was fun

We also went bungee jumping last weekend!! Off the highest bungee bridge in the world, 216 meters which is over 700 feet. It was INSANE! The jumping order was randomly selected by the staff there so I ended up having to go first which made me even more nervous. I was freaking out. After I got tied up by my ankles they scooted me over to the edge of the bridge and counted down from five. They counted really fast though, which was good because I didn't have time to think and I just jumped! It was an amazing experience! The first few seconds were unlike anything I've felt before, since you can't feel the bungee cord yet and it seems like you're literally flying. No whip lash but my ankles did feel like they were going to fall off because the rope was so tight. Gah, incredible.

We have also gone on more beautiful hikes in the area. One really cool one was the Robberg Peninsula where we saw tons of seals on the beach. It is all gorgeous.

It's hard to believe we only have about a week and a half left in Plettenberg Bay! We have made so many funny friends, such as King, the guy who works at the movie rental store, or Keira, who owns what we all call "the smoothie place." Or the kids we met on the beach during Plett rage. I'll miss our rounds with the patients - it has been great to actually see some of them start to feel better while we've been here. And of course the quirky nurses at the clinic and my caregiver Sindiswa. We still have some time together, though, too soon to be sad.

Getting really excited for Independent Student Travel weekend, we're taking a bus to Cape Town for a few days. I'll tell you about it in the next post. Till then, please email me or message me or something because I miss everyone and I know more than a couple of you said you would write! Love from South Africa

First Weeks in South Africa

I think we are actually on week three in South Africa? Not sure but it is definitely flying by so far.

We are living in Plettenberg Bay, which is right on the beach and it is BEAUTIFUL! The beach is only a 20 minute or so walk away from the house. Plett is really nice, very touristy, and it's weird to have the luxuries of a movie rental store and a big grocery store (ahh so many choices) within a short walk. Mijal and I are living with a young South African married couple, Daniel and Chrissy, whose first language is Afrikaans but their English is really good.

In the mornings Mijal and I both catch a taxi to a township called Kurland, aka the Crags, where we follow our caregivers from house to house visiting patients. My caregiver's name is Sindisua. Whenever she's with patients or even talking about her job she just lights up, I can tell she loves her work. We usually walk around visiting 4 or 5 patients a day, and it's cool to start to know the patients and who you're seeing on what day and everything. I enjoy the work but it is my first time seeing really sick people and it's definitely hard. I've gotten to take blood pressure and blood sugar and easy stuff like that but that's kind of all I can do other than smile. There's a language barrier with most of the patients, who either speak Afrikaans (sort of like Dutch but African) or Xhosa (the language with tons of clicks that sounds totally foreign). I'm picking up some basic phrases in the languages but not enough to really have a conversation with non-English speakers! Possibly the hardest thing for me has been seeing some of the housing conditions, which vary a lot in Kurland. There is some government housing that's pretty nice, but many people live in "informal housing" which are basically shacks made out of tin or wood and lined with cardboard or newspaper for insulation. People share spigots and bathrooms outside their houses. It bothers me so much, yet some of my happiest, most positive patients live in these houses. Anyway, next week we get to go help out at the women's shelter there, so I'm excited for that. After lunch every day our taxi picks us back up (our taxi driver and friend, Graiwin, plays some pretty awesome jams) and we drive 20 minutes back into Plett, back to the beautiful homes and tourists on the beach - it's kind of shocking how close the two communities are.

In the afternoons we walk down to our seminar space which is right on the beach (literally the classroom is a little hut in the sand and you can hear the waves). We're (obviously) studying public health and the HIV/AIDS epidemic here and the seminars have been really interesting. We've been discussing questions like "why has sub-Saharan Africa been hit so much harder than other regions of the world," "why is it so difficult to prevent the spread of a preventable disease," and, as always, "what is development?" We've drawn a lot of connections to the history of South Africa and Apartheid and the current public health system. It's all very thought-provoking and there is always SO much reading to do for the next seminar.

This weekend we had Thanksgiving at Rocky Road, which is the retreat center where we had orientation. We had a fantastic Thanksgiving dinner complete with turkey and mashed potatoes and everything, plus mac n cheese YUM. I'm thankful for the opportunity to be here, learning so much with an amazing group of people, and for my family and friends back home. We also went to Monkeyland on Thanksgiving, which is like a reserve for monkeys that are taken from captivity and sort of being rehabilitated to live in the wild. We got SO CLOSE to SO MANY MONKEYS and they were so cute. We took another beautiful hike and also had a guest speaker come talk to us about Apartheid and its end and the future for South Africa.

We also went paintballing for Tom's birthday last week, which was really fun despite the drizzling rain. Everyone got pretty into it and now we're sporting some gruesome bruises.

Next week we're going bungee jumping off the highest bungee bridge in the world (if the rain ever stops)! So much to look forward to, I'm loving South Africa. Hope everyone at home is doing well!

Hikes

I thought I was overdue to put pictures on this blog so here are some photos from the various hikes we've taken. One is Pichincha in Ecuador. There's also Machu Picchu and then the hike that we just took like two days ago in South Africa during orientation, called the Salt River hike. BEAUTIFUL these really don't do it justice.

Peru & the Inca Trail!

I conquered the Inca trail YEAH!!

Because it was definitely a challenge. Four days of crazy hiking. It was a lot fancier than I thought it´d be though - the food! We had like 3 course meals and tea time at 5 every day! We even had pancakes with dulce de leche one morning YUM. Plus we got hot water to wash our hands/feet/faces which was amazing.

But what was REALLY amazing was the porters! Our group of 12 had 18 porters carrying all our tents, groceries, sleeping bags, propane, everything. And they literally RUN up the mountain with so so so much stuff on their backs. They´re incredible! We also had two tour guides named Socrates and Jesus, no joke. They were really funny. We played bananagrams with them one night. I learned a ton from Socrates about the Incan culture and architecture, like the Andean cross or chacana which is really complicated and has a symbol in it for just about every part of Incan life. Crazy.

So seeing those porters sprinting up the mountains in FLIP FLOPS was especially awe-inspring because we were strugglin´ hard core. Day 2 was for sure the hardest, even though it wasn´t the longest, because we had to climb over the highest pass. It´s called Dead Woman´s Pass because from the bottom it´s supposed to look like a dead woman or something, but also because once you have climbed over it you are dead. And your legs are shaking and your face is frozen off because it has been raining all day and the wind is cruel. Day 3 was the longest but at that point we were all going a bit crazy which made it easier. Karelle, Sarah, Conner, Arden and I were bringing up the rear and dubbed ourselves the mountain goats. This mental strategy was literally the only thing that got me through day 3 because mountain goats NEVER get tired. Jesus stayed at the back with us the whole time and probably thought we were insane because we were singing and making animal noises and laughing hysterically. We decided that we need t-shirts that say ¨Mountain goats want s´mo¨. Also if we had a band it would be called Jesus and the Mountain Goats.

When we finally got to Machu Picchu on day 4 I was dead tired but it was still beautiful! We visited a ton of the temple ruins and saw where the Inca (king) lived and all the fountains and places where they´d do sacrifices and stuff. It´s amazing that the Incans had to move all those rocks to make their buildings. HUGE rocks. And we thought we had it bad hauling rocks on our mountains in the ´Walp!

Then we took a bus down to the town Aguas Calientes where we gorged ourselves on a buffet lunch. Later we took a beautiful train ride back to Cuzco. Did I mention that none of us had showered in the past 4 days of trekking. So we reeked pretty bad.

Then we had today to recover in Cuzco (DO LAUNDRY YAY) before we leave tomorrow for the longest day of travel - Peru to South Africa. I think it is like five flights or something. W0o0o0o thats all I can write now because the internet here is awful and this has to post so I can go pack hokay sorry bye